Stop valve for torpedoes



Jan. 17, 1928.

W. DIETER STOP VALVE FOR TORPEDOES Filed Aug. 25. 1925 y N m ..1

Patented Jan. 17, 1928.

UNI'TEDSTATES 1,656,269 PATENT oFFylcE.

WILLIAM DIETER, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO E. W. BLISS COMPANY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION 0F DELAWARE.

sro? vALvE ron ronrnnons.

y.Application 111er!` August 25, 1925. Serial No. 52,383. y

Thisy invention relates to. automobile torpedoes of which the Bliss-Leavitt torpedo,V the standard of the United `States Navy, is`

an example, in Which compressed air from a `flask or reservoiris kpassed at reduced pres sure through a heater in Which a combustible Such as alcohol is burn-ed, and into which.

Water is sprayed, and the resulting mixture of combustion gases and steam is. discharged `to drive a turbine or other motor by which the torpedo is propelled. f ,y

The present invention relatesv to means for shutting off the vvater and fuel'tanks when the torpedo is not in use and for putting them in communication with the respective passages upon the starting of the torpedo on its run. For this purpose stop valves are commonly used, an example of which is contained in the patent to F. M. Leavitt, No. 1,022,486, dated April 9, 1912, in which upon the opening of the starting valve air from the low pressure or Working pressure side ot' the reducing valve is conducted to 'stop valves leading to the tops of the respective tanks, its pressure serving to open these valves and the pressure thus applied over the liquids in the twotanksservingto open the outlet valves in the passages leading from these tanks respectively to the heater. Stop valves of the construction shown n said patent have been Jfound generally acceptable, but 'have been subject to certain `minor defects or disadvantages Which it is the objectof the present invention to overcome.` t

According to the present invention the respective stop valves'are operated by high pressure air instead of low pressure air. These terms are Well understood in the torpedo art. `The air at high or `ilaskpressure is usually at `an initial pressure of at least 3000 poundsper` square inch, which pressure falls progressively during the run of the torpedo; While air at 'low or Work `ing pressure is usually between 40Q and 500 pounds per square inch. By utilizing the high pressure air the stop valves are opened instantaneously 1 and with `absolute certainty and the closed condition of the valves is rendered far' more reliablethan heretofore, because springs of much greater strength can be used than was` possible when they were opened by low pressure air. The 10W pressureair is admitted as heretoforel upon the opening of the upper stop valvesfto enter the tops of thetw'o tanks, but the pressure of this air has no effect in opening the valves, this being done by the high pressure air. Thus instead of connecting the 10W pressure air merely to the upper' stop valves the high pressurevair is connected to both upper and lower valves and the lovv pressure air connec tion to the upper valves is so modiliedthat the low pressure air may pass upon the open# ing of these valves to the tops of the liquid f tanks.

rThe preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in the accompanying drawings wherein,-

Figure 1 is a fragmentary vertical midsection of the mid portion or' a torpedo, the valves and hea-ter being arranged schematically to make their connections clear. y

Fig. 2 is a vertical mid section of the lower stop valves.

Fig. 3 is a similar section of the `upper half of the 4upper stop valves (the lower half thereof being the same as shown in Fig. 2).

Fig. l is a similar section, showing a modiied construction of either the upper or lower valves.` t

`Referring irstto Fig. 1, A is the shell or hullof the torpedo, B is the compressed air flask, C is the valve group and D is the heater (commonly called the superheater). From the flask B there extends as usual a conduit conducting compressed air to the heater and thence to the engine or turbine; this includes a high pressure air pipe a leading intothe starting valve member b of the valve group C; when the starting valve is opened i the air passes .into the pressure reducer d forming part of the valve group and from vthe low` pressure side thereof a conduit e leads the air at working pressure to the heater' D Jfrom which a conduit f leads to the turbine or other motor. The starting valve. and reducermay be as shown in my Patent No. 1,211,104. E desi,f 'natesV the upper pair Vof stopV valves and F the lower pair. ,From

the low pressure conduit e a duct g leads low pressure air Atothe stop valves E, and when these valves are opened the low pressure air -is conveyed through ducts ortubes L to the upper parts of the respective liquid tanks. These tanks are shown as of the cusv tomary construction, the water tank H being per parts ofA these tanks; from the lower parts or' t ie tanks leadl outflow duetsor tubes la and Z respectively which connect with the'pair ofpstop valves F and continuations 'v of these pipes lettered Z and la extend to Lili the heater D and terminate the one in the incl spray nozzle and the other! inthe Water spray nozzle, as usual.

S far as described the' constructionI and arrangement are the same as heretofore except for" the internal construction of the" valvesfE andllT which will noiv'he described@ Referringijtollign, which shows the loper pairoi" stop valves F, each of these comprises ai suitablel shell: orcasing m within' which is a. valveV seat u and" against this seats a tappet or check' valvep c'losingoil communication between the inletv opening' Z' and the outletopening l of ther lett-hand valve or similarly the inlet opening le and outlet open'- The check ing ofl theL r tht hand value".V valves? 7)" close' With the flou" and are pressed down by suitably stiff springs o so. as tov afford a certain andi reliable closure which in t-heinactii'ef condition ot' the torpedo willl effectually prevent any escapeol liquid from either tank to the heater. Each valve' p has a sten'r p" projecting' down into a chamber or cylinder r in which operates a plunger s which normally is held down in the position sh'o'u'n. This position ol? the plunger is sured hy the stress of the spring' g transmitted through the pinf p. Alt t is an inlet. tor high pressure' air; the connection heine' made through the tube shown in Fig; l

whiehconnect's with the valveV ejrou'p on the high' p'ressureside of the reducer Il `lVhen thest'artingralveis opened7 this high preessure" air passes through zintoan air chamber or passage tf in the valve casing and acts beneath both plungrers a,- f'orcibly lifting,"A

them and thereby unseatingr the valvesv pr p andestehlishi'npr eom'municati on' throusfh the` channels Z" and 7u; 7e" for the outflow" of liquid* from the tanks' to the heater. to the extremely higrh pressure of the air the plungz'ers a, a are thrown up with a great forcet and it is desirable to provide cushioning washers 'La betiveentheir enlarged headsand annular stops formed infthe'` casingf,

The upperV valves E are; of likel construc-` ton at the bottomA and: of similar const-rueA the` upper valver'by aduct v branching from the duct t or otherwise directly from the high pressure side of thereducer.

Itresults from the construction thus described that while the torpedo is in storage and before l:iunchinp:` the four step valves are held closed by their check valves y), beingpressed toI their seats very firmly hy the springs g which may be very strong or still so that thereV is no possibility of leakage from the tanks H and I either through the 'loiver or upper valve; so-that inf this respect the etop valves operate with much greater" certainty and' positifven'ess* than those heretoL fore used. Upon thel launching' of theV torv pedo the' starting' valve 'b being* openedv in the usual Wayhy theoperati'on of the' launching trigger (which vents pressure freni above the ifilungerof this valvel through a ventdujct in isv well understood, the means ue'diin practicebeing that shown inl my PatentfNo: 1,303,045) high pressure air' is at once ad mitted to: the ducts' t and fu' and thence beneath the plungersi-s s ofl the respective stop vai-frcs, thereby forcibly lifting: theseplunglers, and unseatinfr the cheek valves 'pand thereby establishingr full conununication through the respective stop valves. This operation being:V performed by air at high pressure is instantaneous and is of absolute' certainty. 'Iher'eupou low pressureair en`V ters through g' and passino" throulrlifthelup# per stop valves flows' through h and I into"V the tops ot the tanks H and I. and, exerts a pressureiupon the liquids th ereinf. 'hy means shown in' my said, Patent No. 12111041) tendiufr tof torcel theser liquids out', and the lifpii-:l flow takes place thnough the' ducts Z I" lezulilrfr alcohol lor the: heater and throuoh the' ducts 7i: and i leading" Water to the houten Y A Upon theautomatic stoppage 'of the tonpedo Whichasis well understood closes n faiuf the starting valve' 7, the high pressure air quickly escapesthrough the reducer and out to the turbine so that'thefpressure irrt and u drops andl thefrespectivecheeh valves 7? are replaced b v their springs .so as to close all communication with the twoliquidtanks;

While the construction just described is considered thepretem'hle embodiment ofthe inventionpyet itl is to -be-un'derstood' that the same: is subject toconsiderablev variation; While the check valvesf ott-he tappet type are preferable,r yetA other' types of' stop; valves may be used. The `high pressure air` may act directlyor indirectly 'to open these valves.-y Anexample ofone suitable'modiication7 is shown in Fig. 4, Where the constructionis thesame as inv the upper halfofA Fig. 2, thevalves p and their stems 7J and springs g being unchanged; but instead of thep'lungers a s inrFig; 2 a single horizontally moving plunger :v isprovided which is forced to the left bythe high pressure air; its uppercsid'e are notches y y which are entered by the valve stems and which have inclined sides so that as the plunger moves to the left these act as Wedges to lift the valve stems. A spring a" restores the plunger when the air pressure escapes.

To insure the operation of the plungers s and w and provide against trapping of air or fluid beyond them, it is preferable to provide minute vent openings z, as shown in Figs. 2 and' 4.

It will be understood that while I have illustrated my invention as applied to a tor-V pedo having two liquid tanks I-I and I yet it is equallyapplicable to torpedoes having only a single tank. Also While preferably both the upper and lower stop valves are operated by high pressure air according to my present invention yet it is possible to only partially avail of my invention by oper ating only one set of valves in this manner.

When the vent openings a are used it will be desirable to connect them to the afterbody by tubes e a as shown in Fig. l, in order to isolate these vents from the midchamber and prevent the possibility of water entering into the plunger chambers r of the stop valves. s

I claim as my invention:

1. In an automobile torpedo having a compressed air ask, a heater, a conduit leading from the flask to said. heater, a pres sure reducer in said conduit, a liquid tank having a compressed air duct leading from the low-pressure side of said reducer to the upper part of said tank and a liquid duct leading from the lower part oi said tank to the heater, and a stop-valve controlling at least one of said ducts, the combination therewith of means for admitting air from the high pressure side of said reducer to operate said stop-valve.

2. In an automobile torpedo having a compressed air flask, a heater, a conduit leading from the flask to said heater, a pressure reducer in said conduit, a liquid` tank having a compressed air duct leading from the lowpressure side of said reducer to the upper `from the lower part of said tank to the heater, and stop-valves controlling said ducts respectively, the combination therewith of means for admitting air from the high pressure side of said reducer `to operate said stopvalves. n

3. In an automobile torpedo having a compressed air fiask, a heater, a conduit leading from the flask to said heater, a pressure reducer in said conduit, liquid and fuel tanks, compressed air ducts leading from the low-pressure side of said reducer to the upper part of said tanks respectively, and liquid ducts leading from the lower parts of said tanks to the heater, and stop-valves controlling at least one of said ducts for each tank, the combination therewithl ot' means for admitting air from the high-pressure `side of said reducer to operate said stop`- valves. p

4r.V In an automobile torpedo havin a `compressed air flask, a heater, a con uit leading from the flask to'said heater, a pressure reducer in said conduit, a liquid tank having a compressed air duct leading from the low-pressure side of said reducer to the upper part of said tank and a liquid duct leading from the lower part of said tank A to the heater, and a stop-valve controlling at least one of said ducts and normally clos ing Communication therethrough, the combination therewith of means for admitting air from the high pressure side of said reopen `communication through said duct.

.5. In an automobile torpedo, according to claim 1, the stop-valve having a springseated check valve for closing communication through said duct, and a plunger connected to open said check valve, combined with means for admitting air from the high pressure side of said reducer to operate said plunger and thereby open said check valve.

`ducer to operate said stop-valve, whereby to A In witness `whereof, I have hereunto v signed my name.

n WILLIAM DIETER. 

